An Alternative End
by kingofstormandfire
Summary: Disclaimer: Another interesting spin of the Greengrass contract situation. Harry Potter discovers he is betrothed to Daphne Greengrass in his fourth year. Despite the knowledge of his impending marriage at seventeen, Harry attempts to balance school life, his own interests as well as his mission to defeat Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters. No bashing character. Alt-universe


"Potter."

Harry Potter turned his head towards the voice that had suddenly broken through the conversation that his friends had been having about the Quidditch World Cup. Standing in the doorway was a unfamiliar girl with long, golden-blonde tied into a ponytail. Despite it being several hours before the Hogwarts express would be nearing Hogwarts, the girl had changed into their school robes and wore a black plain work robe along with grey canvas shoes.

Harry found his eyes drawn towards her robes, and immediately tensed. They were trimmed with green cotton, and on the right side of her chest was the emblazoned grey-green sigil of a serpent. The symbol of the Slytherin. Harry looked up at the girl and noticed her grey-blue eyes immediately darken when their stares met.

Unsure of how to respond, Harry breathed a small amount of relief when his best-friend Hermione Granger did so for him.

"I'm sorry, but is there something that you need?" Hermione asked politely, placing her book and wand down onto her lap

"Yeah, what do you want? Has Malfoy and the rest of the snakes sent you here to rile us up? You can shove off if that's the case. We're in the middle of something here." Ron Weasley said harshly, gesturing towards Harry, Hermione and their fellow Gryffindor Neville Longbottom

The blonde-haired girl scowled at Ron, shaking her head at his best-friend in almost mock disbelief. "Charming as always, Weasley. If you must know, I wasn't sent by Malfoy or any of my fellow quote-on-quote 'snakes'. Nor am I here to disrupt your catch up tea party. I just need to speak with Potter for a moment. Urgently. And alone."

Harry raised his brow at that. Why would someone from Slytherin wish to speak with him? Better yet, someone he had not recollection of knowing. It was hard for him to believe that her intentions were good. As hard as Ron's tone had been, it did cause him to wonder. Was Malfoy trying to play a trick on him by sending some third-year to coax him away from his friends? Would he be led into an ambush and circled by Slytherins, stunned and thrown off the moving train.

Or even worse, cursed and then oblivated with a false memory? He wouldn't put it past the son of Lucius Malfoy to do something so dark, especially to someone he hated.

"Wait, I know you." Hermione suddenly exclaimed, her eyes alight with mild curiosity. "We do Ancient Runes and Arithmancy together. Daphne Greengrass, I presume?"

The girl nodded. "One in the same, Granger. We also have Potions, Care of the Magical Creatures, Transfiguration and Defence classes together, though judging by the blank expressions on Weasley's and Potter's, I assume that they still don't recognise me."

She was right. He tried hard to remember if he had ever noticed Daphne Greengrass throughout their first three years at Hogwarts, though at that moment he could not recall any looks or words exchanged between them. The only interactions Harry had had with Slytherins were with Malfoy and his gang, as well as Pansy Parkinson and her haggle. Harry was unsure if Daphne had been ever apart of those groups. To him, they all blended into the same sneering face.

Daphne smirked at Ron's befuddled face, and shifted her gaze towards Neville. "You remember me, don't you Longbottom? Or have you lived up to your reputation and forgotten?"

Neville's face flushed, with the round-faced boy barely muttering a reply to the girl, "Your mother's gala last summer. I remember talking to you."

"Oh, that is indeed surprising. I for sure thought you would have forgotten," Daphne said flippantly. "A pity you can remember that and not Professor Snape's or McGonagall's instructions in class. You might scrape even an Acceptable if you could, and not an exploding cauldron of Confusing Concoction into your face."

Neville's blue eyes dimmed, and he lowered his head in shame.

"What do you want, Greengrass?" Harry finally asked, feeling bad for his friend. "If you want to talk to me, you can do so in front of my friends."

"So distrustful, Potter. I can't decide if I am annoyed or impressed. However, the matter I need to speak to you about is not something that I can say in front of your friends. Let's just say that is situation for the eyes of only those named Potter and Greengrass."

"What does that mean?" Hermione queried, before Harry could respond. "Is this something to do with Harry's parents?"

Daphne Greengrass' blue eyes glistened. " _Close_ , Granger. Quite close."

Daphne sighed in frustration, "Merlin's beard, if you truly don't trust me, I can swear for you lot on my magic that I have no ill-intentions towards Potter. Nor will coming with me cause him bodily harm. I'm not like Malfoy and his ilk. But I need to speak with, Potter. Alone."

Harry contemplated what she was saying. Despite having never spoken to this girl prior to this moment, Greengrass was willing to swear on her magic that she was not attempting to mislead him. For a moment, he briefly considered making the girl take the oath. As much as he suspected that she was sincere in her intentions, he could never be too sure with Slytherins.

"You should go, Harry," Hermione was the first person to speak in the momentary lapse of silence that had followed. "what she has to say. It couldn't hurt to hear her out."

"Yes it could, Hermione," Ron looked at her in bewilderment, clearly shocked at her suggestion, "She's a snake. Like Malfoy, like Crabbe and Goyle, like Parkinson. You know how they treat us and the rest of the school. She just wants to lead him right into Malfoy's Death Eater hands!"

"Ron, not every Slytherin is like Malfoy," Hermione argued. I know the sample size we've encountered has not...helped in informing our perspective, but stereotyping a person because of their house is ridiculous. Besides, even people from Gryffindor have dabbled in the dark arts."

"Like who?" Ron challenged.

"Scabbers." Harry pointed out, his voice scarce a whisper.

Hermione looked at Harry sympathetically, while Ron looked as if someone had stunned him. Only they understood what Harry was referring too. And it was definitely not Ron's former pet rat.

Before Neville or even Greengrass could question him on what he had just said, Harry suddenly stood up and turned to Daphne.

"You don't have to take that oath. I'll give you twenty minutes, Greengrass. After that, I'm coming back to my compartment whether you like it or not."

"Alright, Potter."

Harry looked to Ron, Hermione and Neville, "I'll be right back, guys. Don't worry about me. If anything happens, I can take care of myself"

"We know that but still. Are you sure, mate?"

"Yeah, Ron. I'm sure." With that, Harry followed Daphne into the hallway. As he left closed the compartment door, he swallowed laughter after hearing Neville ask Ron and Hermione whether Ron's rat had fallen in with the Death Eaters.

"You have some interesting friends, Potter." Greengrass said as they walked down the train hallway.

"They're good people. Some of the best and most loyal people I know," Harry replied, absentmindedly. "Why, don't you have friends like that?"

"Only one. Her name's Tracey Davis. In our year. In Slytherin, you can only trust so many people far enough to count them as friends. I trust Tracey."

"I assume she won't be with us when we talk?"

"No," Daphne answered, as they continued walking. "It will just be the two of us."

Harry did not know if that was meant to be encouraging or disconcerting.

* * *

By the time they had stopped at her empty compartment (save for two cases of luggage), Harry noticed that the rain had gotten heavier as the train moved further north, the winds growing bolder against the steamy window.

As Harry sat down, Daphne locked the compartment door and placed a privacy charm on it.

"This matter that you wish to speak to me about must be really important." Harry said, watching as she pocketed her wand away.

"You can definitely say that, Potter." Daphne sat down opposite him. Even with the charm, Harry noticed that her posture and demeanor seemed to indicate that she was nervous.

"So what's this all about, Greengrass? You seemed awfully cagey in front of my friends." Harry asked. He did not mean to sound impatient or demanding, but he found this entire situation weird. A Slytherin was acting civil towards him. He could not help but be curious.

He wondered if she wanted to ask him about what happened in second year - if he really was the heir of Salazar Slytherin. Or what happened with Sirius last year. Those were things he couldn't tell her.

Daphne pursued her lips, and looked towards the dreary window. "This is going to be harder than I thought. I guess there's no easy way to ease into this, is there?"

She seemed to be talking to herself. Before Harry could say anything, Daphne looked back at him. "Potter, how much do you know about Arthurian legend and the age of Camelot?"

Out of all the things Harry had expected her to begin with, that had been on the bottom of his list. "I'm sorry, but what that does have to do with anything?"

Daphne gritted her teeth, and closed her eyes briefly as if to reassure herself. "Just answer the damn question."

Harry scowled, but chose to oblige her, "Just what Muggles know. Merlin, Morgana, King Arthur, the sword in the stone Excalibur. Knights of the Round Table, Lady in the Water, Guinevere and Lancelot's love affair and all that stuff. I was surprised to find that it was all true, and that Camelot did exist."

"It existed alright. I'm surprised you haven't gone out of your way to learn the history of your kind than what that fool ghost Binns drones on in his lessons. Merlin was the greatest wizard of them all, and Morgana was even greater in power than You-Know-Who or Grindelwald combined. Arthur was a Muggleborn born out of his father's affair with a witch, while his son Mordred was born out of an affair he had with his half-sister Morgana.

"When Camelot was at it's peak during the days of King Arthur, no nation could best the kingdom that we now know to encompass England. Camelot was a precursor to what we know now as wizarding culture, Potter. Whereas Arthur's grandfather and father outlawed magic and burned so called apostates, Arthur allowed us to flourish and develop. Wizards, witches, wands, broomsticks, owls, pureblood supremacy, the dark arts, potions, magical creatures and fantastic beasts, noble families of magical birth. So much of who we are is derived from those days."

"Ok, but what does that have do with what's happening now? I mean, right now in this compartment?" Harry questioned.

Daphne hissed, "Patience, Potter. I thought hanging around with Granger and Weasley all the time, you've had learnt to listen. If you let me explain, I promise you'll understand."

Harry grunted, and leaned back into his seat.

"In the age of Camelot as I said, noble families existed in the plentiful. Most pureblood, with occasional half-blood and Muggleborn lords and ladies. A sharp contrast to today as even though pureblood families do exist and have considerable influence on Wizarding politics, we are scarce and are no longer nobility."

"I assume you're a pureblood as well?" Harry was not surprised, sensing already her aura of aristocracy from her attitude. He just hoped that she wasn't like Malfoy in terms of viewpoint.

"I am," Daphne nodded, straightening herself proudly. "The Greengrasses are an ancient and well-respected family in the pureblood circle. Though are wealth does not match the Malfoys or the Nott's, we are quite rich and hold sway in wizarding politics. My father and mother both hold interest in several businesses and establishments, as well as seats on the Wizengamot."

"Anyway," Daphne continued. "Back to Camelot, my family was established as nobility during Arthur's first year of ruling. Our position in the King's court however was tenuous, as our rise to power was fraught with backstabbing, plotting and murder. In order to consolidate our position and livelihoods, my forefathers had to make alliances that would secure our dynasty and place in the Wizarding community. This brings us to the Potters."

"The Potters? You mean, my family?" Harry's eyes widened. He did not know much about his family's history, though he considered that his own fault as he had never sought to learn.

Daphne rolled her eyes, "Of course, your family, idiot. You see any other Potters at school or in this compartment? My family, backed into a corner due to a rise in enemies, made a pact with the Potters. Your family at the time was the most powerful noble family in the kingdom of Camelot. You allegedly were the first wizards to support Arthur's claim to the throne against Morgana. Merlin made sure you're rewarded your family very handsomely for their loyalty."

"From your look of fascination, I am shocked that no one has told you about your family's history and legacy," Daphne said to him, her blue eyes almost piercing into his face. "I was sure Dumbledore or even that half-giant oaf would have. Hell, even Granger with how much she pours herself into those tomes of hers could have told you. The Potters have played a key role in British wizarding history."

"My family were really that important?" Harry was almost in disbelief.

"Yes. I won't get into your entire history, but it spans incredibly far. Recently, your grandfather and grandmother fought against Grindelwald at Nuremberg. Your father and mother were poised to shake the community by its head before He Who Must Not Be Named arose with his Death Eaters ." Daphne said, glancing over him with a disapproving glare. "Now, you are all that's left. How the mighty have fallen."

Where the hell did that come from? Harry ignored the insult, as cutting as the comment had meant to be.

"You were talking about a pact between our families.".

"The pact was a contract signed between our families," Daphne went back to what she was saying. "While the Potters provided the Greengrasses the protection and security we needed against other houses, we would provide them the legitimacy and knowledge needed to maneuver the politics of the wizarding world. The game of politics in our world is treacherous and unyielding, Potter. My father has stories that will make your blood coil."

"You said legitimacy. What does that mean? I thought you said the Potters were the most powerful noble family in Camelot? Why would they need legitimacy?" Harry wondered.

Daphne sighed. "So many questions, Potter. Delaying the inevitable, such it is for you Gryffindors. I thought you wished to be back with your friends? Your family while powerful were Muggleborn. They were still held back from being truly accepted in the pureblood circles. By signing a contract with the Greengrasses, we were guaranteeing your family complete power only second to Merlin and the King himself."

"How?"

"Through marriage of course." Daphne seemed to brace herself. Harry felt the train womble and creak against a slight bump in the track, and assumed that her sudden stiffening came from that.

"The Greengrasses promised two brides to the Potter family in order to strengthen their line. The contract was very specific and had...numerous requirements and specifications that needed to be made in regards to the alliance. It was such the case with the marriages. The eldest son of Lord Potter married a Greengrass and fathered several children with her that would go on to encompass your line of heritage, Potter. However, the second son before he could marry his bride was killed during Mordred's uprising.

"As Lord Potter had no other sons, the fulfilment of marriage was not pursued and that Greengrass lady married another. However, the contract was thorough in it's writing. The second marriage was required by ancient and magical law to be carried out. Although marriage contracts were eventually thrown out after falling out in fashion in the 1920s, ancient treaties and contract were still meant to be upheld by magic itself. However, no Potter or Greengrass since Arthur fell and Excalibur was thrown into the lake met the benchmarks set by the contract.

"Until now."

Harry had never thought himself as being completely shrewd or painfully observant. He always relied on Hermione for such matters. He had never considered himself as smart enough to unearth many of the secrets that were in front of him. He had always needed to be guided by the friends and people around him in order to get through his life as well as his education in Hogwarts. Without those people, Harry was sure that he would not have survived his first year.

However, even he could make out what Daphne was insinuating. Was that why she had looked so tense and agitated throughout this entire time. Why she had seemed so uncomfortable being in his presence?

"No way. You cannot be serious. You have to be lying. No way." Harry burst out, unable to contain himself.

Daphne shook her head, "I'm not lying, Potter. I would never lie about something as serious as this. As much as I hate to admit it, we are betrothed to be married."

 _No freaking way. Impossible. There is no way this is happening. Of all the things._ Harry thoughts were splintered throughout his mind. This was not happening. He could not truly believe it.

"No, you are lying," Harry muttered. "No way this is true. I refuse to believe you. This is just a trick."

"I can assure you, Potter. I am not lying and-" Daphne began to speak, but was interrupted by Harry's yell,

"You are lying!"

Daphne stopped, her mouth open in surprise at Harry's raised voice. Harry stood up and found himself breathing heavily, despite having been seated for almost fifteen minutes listening to her spout lies.

"You are lying!" Harry repeated, snarling. "There is no way in hell that we are betrothed. My parents would not allow that to happen. Dumbledore would not allow that to happen Ron was right. You were just trying to play a trick on me, huh? I bet when I leave this compartment, Malfoy and his goons will be waiting just outside where I can't see and they'll attack me. It was a nice trick, but it won't work.

"All your Slytherins are all the same - conniving little twats who are too prideful and too big for their breeches. Tell your ringleader to leave me alone because I swear I don't give an ass who his father is. Next time he tries to come after my friends or me, I'm gonna hurt him so bad he won't be able to walk for a year."

Harry made for the door, but found his arm being grabbed by an enraged Greengrass. Her grip was surprisingly strong for a girl of shorter stature. "Sit down, Potter, you bloody stupid git. I'm telling the truth. You think I would risk my reputation on a lie? If word got out that I lied to you about this, I would be ruined for attempting to disorient the Gryffindor Golden Boy and the Boy-Who-Lived."

"Let go of me, Greengrass." Harry growled, pulling out his wand with his spare hand. "I don't care if you're a girl, I will curse you, damn the consequences. If you let me go now, I won't speak of this to anyone and we won't have to ever acknowledge each other in our lives. Ever."

"As much as I would love that Potter, the unfortunate reality is that that is no longer possible given in the circumstances. I am telling the truth." She hissed.

"Prove it, then. Swear that oath you were talking about back then." Harry goaded her. If she refused to take the oath or she was able to use magic, then he would know her to be a liar. And he would be able to get on with his life.

Pushing Harry's arm away, Daphne pulled out her wand and pressed the tip against her lips. She said. "In the name of all that is good and true, I swear by Merlin's word that I am betrothed to Harry James Potter. If I am not or am lying to him in any way so forth, I will relinquish my ability to use magic."

A faint flash of light surrounded Daphne after she had finished reciting her oath.

" Lumos ." Daphne said clearly.

To Harry's horror, the tip of Daphne's wand was lit with a luminous white light. She could still use her magic.

 _No, no, no, this can't be true,_ Harry thought to himself as Daphne stared at him, a triumphant smirk on her face. _I am in a dream. I'm just sleeping. That has to it. Any moment now, Ron or Hermione will wake me up._

"As I said, Potter. Now, sit down." Daphne commanded firmly, indicating to his vacant seat.

Wordless, Harry sat back down. He found himself trying to open his mouth, but he could not utter a sound. He could not believe what was happening. What was he going to do? How was he going to explain this to Ron and Hermione?

"Don't look so glum, Potter. You're not the only one who is stuck in this damn betrothal. Don't look so alone, I'm stuck in this too with you. It's best know that we work together to make the best of this situation."

Harry failed to respond. How could he after that bombshell? He was arranged to married to the girl in front of him. A girl whom he did not know, and was sure that he did not like.

"I went through all that trouble explaining the context behind this contract and that was the reaction I got? I can only tremble in fear at what you would have done if I had just impromptly told you about our betrothal," Daphne trembled. "You might have really tried to curse me."

Harry stared at the floor, his green eyes muted. He could feel his cheeks tighten into his already gaunt face, his cheekbones pressing against his skin. All his senses were alight right now. He could not concentrate properly on his surroundings.

Harry felt his shoulder being shaken by Greengrass. He looked up and saw the blonde-haired girl looking at him, her face contorted with both annoyance and impatience. "Don't act so sullen with me, Potter. I refuse to do so. As we are to be married, we must do what we can."

"Is...is there-there-there, anyway to break...this contract," Harry stammered finally. "I will pay anything to whoever can destroy this contract. I will do anything to not have to go through this. There has to be a way to stop this from happening."

If he wasn't feeling as he was, Harry could have sworn to have seen a flash of hurt pass through Daphne's scowling face. "Look, Potter. There is nothing we can do. The contract cannot not be bought out, nor can the magical enchantments that bind it be broken. Trust me on that. My family has gone through every channel that exists in attempts to rescind this contract. My father and mother are still looking, but it is looking far and far more likely that the contract's power cannot be broken. It is too ancient of a magic that not even someone like Dumbledore or the goblins of Gringotts can handle."

"One goddamn year," Harry murmured to himself, tightening his fists against his lap. "I just wanted one goddamn normal year where I could be a simple Hogwarts student instead of some faux adventurer."

"Potter, all things considered, I'm sorry this happened. This was out of everyone's control. No one could have predicted this to have surfaced now. Even the goblins at Gringotts were stunned. I know you told your friends that you were leaving in twenty minutes, but you have to stay and let me explain. I will give you all the details-"

"No." Harry said firmly, finally finding his voice. "I can't...I can't deal with this right now. I just can't."

Harry slowly stood up, and rubbed his glasses with the sleeve of his shirt. "Please, let's just forget about this for now. I just can't think about this. Not right now."

"Don't back away now, Harry Potter," Daphne warned, getting onto her feet and grabbing his shoulder. "When we are seventeen, we are going to be married. This is not a moot point. I don't want to deal with this as well, but what we have in front of us is too big to ignore. We have plans to make and groundwork to cover if we are going to make this work. We have to make this work. We need too. If we don't, our lives are going to be completely miserable once we turn seventeen. And for you...well, I'm not sure if you could cope with that giving your untimely circumstances."

Harry shook her hand away angrily, and glared at her with flashing green eyes. "Look, Greengrass. We'll...talk about once we get back to school. We have the entire school year to get used to it, right? We can...we can...I'm sure we can try then."

"Potter, you will avoid me at every chance you can get when we settle back in Hogwarts. I can see it in your eyes. We might as well take the chance now and talk about this."

"I am telling you, Greengrass. Right now, there is nothing to talk about," Harry replied icily. "I'll see you later."

With that, Harry unlocked the compartment door before Daphne could stop him and loudly slammed the door shut. Before anyone could stick their heads out to see what had caused the noise, Harry had already stormed quickly back towards the way he had came.

* * *

To think that he had been wishing to be normal for a change. Perhaps he shouldn't have been so abrupt and aggressive towards Greengrass. As much as he wished to blame her, it was absolutely not her fault. They were being damned in hindsight by their ancestors ambitions. He should have stayed for longer than he did and discussed with her the implications of their betrothal, but Harry was too much in a blind daze to think logically.

All he had wanted was to go through his school year like a regular teenager. Do well in his subjects, avoid detention, help Gryffindor win the championship for the year. Hell, he had been hoping to test the waters and ask a girl out on a date. Maybe he could have been in a relationship with Greengrass through normal circumstances. She was quite pretty, and very smart with a sharp wit.

 _We could have been the first Slytherin-Gryffindor couple in over sixty years,_ Harry thought despondently.

How could he date other girls when he had a cold, biting and scowling betrothed sitting a few feet before him during meals. Several tables behind him during lessons. Watching him play Quidditch against her own house team. Being only so close during Hogsmeade weekends.

 _Even if we decide to date other people before we marry, it will still be weird._

Sighing, Harry was wrenched out of his thoughts as he neared his compartment. To his surprise, he found a fuming Ron standing behind the sliding compartment, which Hermione had just finished repairing.

"... _Father's always associated with the top people in the Ministry_... Dad could've got promotion any time…he just likes it where he is…" He heard Ron hissing.

"What the bloody hell is going on here?" Harry asked, thankful that the scene provided him a distraction from his reality.

Ron's blue eyes met Harry, and his sour expression immediately brightened. "Harry? Blimey, mate, there you are. Where the hell have you been? We thought the snakes had gotten to you too!"

"Seriously, what the hell happened?" Harry repeated, as Hermione pocketed her wand.

"Three words: Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle," His bushy-haired friend replied. "They came in here and started antagonising Ron about his father and his dress robes."

"That slithering snake can go rot in hell for all I care," Ron muttered, plopping down to his seat, his face scarlet.

Hermione sighed, and then looked up at Harry. Her eyes suddenly were brimmed with concern. "God, Harry. You look awful. What ever happened between you and Greengrass?"

"Did she try to stun you, mate? Try to trick you into a room of illusioned snakes?" Ron prodded.

"No, she didn't," Harry said, coldness seeping into his voice. "I would have preferred it though, especially after hearing what she wanted to tell me."

The others looked between each other, seemingly unsure of Harry's reaction.

"What, Harry, what happened? I've never seen you so shaken before after a single conversation. Did she threaten you with something, or did she tell you something about your parents? She did mention them before you guys left." Hermione asked gently.

"I don't want to talk about it. I'm sorry, but can we just discuss something else? Anything. Hell, let's talk about Neville's toad or Crookshanks or who'll win the next Cup. Anything but Daphne Greengrass." Harry pleaded, sinking into his seat next to Ron.

"Mate, come on, tell us. If it's something so bad, we'll figure it out all together. Neville's here, he'll help us help you out as well. We're your friends. We've got your back." Ron placed a reassuring hand on Harry's shoulder.

To the surprise of his friends and most of all himself, a frustrated Harry pushed Ron's hand away. "Listen, I don't want to talk about it!" He growled. "I just...I just can't. I don't know, I just don't know."

* * *

Harry's bad mood continued for the rest of the journey. Besides munching on some Cauldron Cake, he did not speak much. It was left to Neville and Ron - who didn't seem angry regarding Harry's rejection - to carry conversation in the compartment. Hermione continued to stare at him worryingly, trying to decipher what was wrong.

Harry attempted not to think about what Greengrass had revealed to him, but the thought of her in a white dress and him in a suit-and-tie kept plaguing his thoughts throughout the remainder of the trip. He almost shouted in relief when it was finally time to change into their school robes, as the Hogwarts Express neared the pitch-darkness of Hogsmeade station.

After stopping by to say hello to their friend Hagrid as he began escorting the first years, Harry, Ron, Hermione and Neville followed the rest of the crowd along the platform. While Ron and Neville chattered with Hermione making slight contributions, Harry remained silent as he kept vigilant for Daphne Greengrass. He was definitely not in the mood to see her.

Harry and his friends climbed onto one of the horseless carriages waiting for them at the station, and joined the long procession rumbling up the track towards the great castle of Hogwarts. One of the few places in the world that Harry could call home.

By the time they had reached the Entrance Hall and had laughed at Peeve's' antics, the four entered the Great Hall, which was considerably more warmer than the drenched and freezy English weather that they had been stricken with. The four long house tables were already packed with chattering students, while the staff sat along one side of a fifth table facing their students.

Breathing a sigh of relief after noticing that Greengrass was not seated yet, Harry quickly strode towards the Gryffindor table at the far side of the hall and found a seat between Ron and Neville. Even if he took a seat that were directly in her line of sight, Harry had made sure to sit where she would be staring at his bare back.

As they all settled in, Harry looked up to the staff table and could not see a new face amongst the teachers.

"I wonder where's the new DADA teacher?" He wondered aloud.

"I was thinking the same thing," Hermione sid, who was looking up at the table. "It's odd that they are not here. Quirrell, Lockhart and Lupin were when they were teaching Defence."

"Maybe they finally decided to stop teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts? The job's jinxed anyway. No teacher lasts the year anyway, even before we started." Ron said, rubbing his stomach in eager anticipation.

"Don't say such a thing, Ron!" Hermione exclaimed.

Soon, Professor McGonagall was leading a long line of very wet first-years up to the top of the hall for the Sorting. The Sorting Hat opened the Sorting with a different song from Harry's first year, which was met with a great round of applause along with the Great Hall.

Soon, the Sorting began. Harry turned around in his seat to watch the first year nervously sit down on the stool and be decided by the Hat.

"Ackerley, Steward!" McGonagall shouted.

A nervous looking boy placed the hat onto his head and stood on the stood.

" _Ravenclaw._ " The hat shouted.

Harry applauded politely with the rest of the houses, but they were easily overshadowed by Ravenclaw. Harry caught a glimpse of several faces he recognised from the house. Padma Patil, Terry Boot, Michael Cornier, Anthony Goldstein. To his pleasant surprise, Harry spotted Ravenclaw seeker Cho Chang clapping enthusiastically for the new student. The very pretty Asian girl was a fifth-year student, and someone who sent trembles down Harry's spine.

"Baddock, Malcom!"

" _Slytherin_ ."

Both Ron and Harry snorted in disgust, while Hermione looked at the two disapprovingly. Most of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff had abstained from clapping, while only some scattered from Ravenclaw and an almost rambunctious clapping from the Slytherin house.

Daring himself, Harry scanned the Slytherin table and found Daphne near the far end of the Hall towards the raised teacher's table. She was seated by the large glass-stained windows, situated between a pretty brunette girl and an bronze-skinned, muscled boy. Harry assumed that the brunette was Tracey Davis, though could not place a name on the Slytherin boy.

Daphne did not seem to be looking at him, and was clapping alongside her house while in attent discussion with Davis. Harry could only guess what they were talking about, though he had a funny feeling that it was regarding him.

"Branstone, Eleanor!"

" _Hufflepuff!_ "

If Slytherin had been loud, then Hufflepuff were practically a circus when they welcomed their new student. Harry looked towards the table for familiar faces. Hannah Abbott was seated next to her best-friend Susan Bones, who had become disarmingly pretty over the summer break. Harry recognised Justin Finch-Fletchley, Zacharias Smith and Ernie Macmillian as well, the latter who had seemed to have a growth spurt over the break.

"Creevey, Dennis"

Harry clapped the loudest of the Gryffindor table alongside Fred and George Weasley when Dennis was placed into Gryffindor. In his opinion, Gryffindor was the loudest of them all when welcoming their new student. An excited Dennis came to to his brother Colin Creevey, who pointed Harry out to him. Harry shook his head and looked away. That boy had always been obsessed with him since his first year, seeing Harry as some sort of hero.

After the Sorting was concluded and Kevin Whitby was placed into Hufflepuff, Professor Dumbledore got to his feast and commenced the feast.

Harry and the rest of the Hall tucked into their food. As usual, it was delicious. As Nearly Headless Nick spoke absently with them about what had happened over the break, Harry tore a sizeable chunk of his steak and savoured it. He needed it. He was knackered from the journey to Hogwarts. He hoped a good night's sleep would do him good. He began stuffing himself with more food that was loaded onto his plate.

"Oi, Harry. I dunno how it's possible, but you're out eating Ron! I think we may have a new Gryffindor champion in the making." Dean Thomas shouted a few feet away from him, causing some of the students to laugh.

"Hear, hear, to that I say." Harry raised his glass of pumpkin juice to Dean, and grinned.

"Honestly, Harry. I can't believe I'm saying this, but do watch yourself. You will get food and drink all over yourself and the table." Hermione chided.

"Yes, mum." Harry replied, shifting his raised glass towards Hermione, which caused Ron and Neville to laugh into their food.

After they had finished their feast, Dumbledore stood up from his seat and began to speak from his podium.

"So! Now that we are all fed and watered, I must ask for your attention while I give a few notices. Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to tell you that the list of objects forbidden inside the castle has, this year, been extended to include Screaming yo-yo's, fanged frisbees and Ever Bashing Boomerangs. The full list comprises some four hundred and thirty seven items, I believe, and can be viewed in Mr. Filch's office, if anyone would like to check it."

Harry laughed alongside the rest of the Hall as the Weasley twins dramatically whooped with laughter, noticing that the caretaker was watching them almost murderously.

"As ever, I would like to remind you all that the Forest is out of bounds to students, as is the village of Hogsmeade to all those below third year. It is also my painful duty to inform you that the inter-house Quidditch Cup will not take place this year."

There was a moment of complete silence, which was broken by George Weasley shouting, "Outrageous!". Pandemonium broke through the Great Hall that was only quieted after several minutes. Harry could not believe it. What was so important that Quidditch had to be cancelled in favour of?

Dumbledore continued, "This is due to an event that will be starting in October, and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy – but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year, Hogwarts will be host to-"

Suddenly, the animated night sky above everyone's heads flashed gray, and lightning flashed through the Hall. As students screamed, there was a ball of red light that flew up into the ceiling, causing it to suddenly stop and look again like the night sky. Everyone followed the path of the spell to a man leaning upon a long staff, shrouded in a black travelling cloak.

Lowering his cloak, Harry almost choked upon seeing his face. It was as if someone had carved the face out of wood, and left dents and snarled scars that were gnarled across the fact. Although scary, that was not what made him frightening. One of his eyes was large and round as a coin with a fake, electric blue eye. The blue eyes moved without ever stopping or blinking, rolling up and down and side to side.

The man strode through the silence to greet Dumbledore, who took his grizzled hand and shook it seamlessly. He turned to the rest of the Hall and shouted, "Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Moody."

Not one of the staff, save for Hagrid and Dumbledore, clapped. Neither did any student. Everyone was transfixed on his unusual appearance.

" Mad-eye Moody? " Ron muttered.

"What ever happened to his face? He looked like someone attacked him and left him for dead." Hermione whispered to them.

"Dunno." Harry whispered.

After a nonplussed Moody had settled into the staff table, Dumbledore continued his speech, "As I was saying, we are to have the honour of hosting the Triwizard Tournament at Hogwarts this year."

As chaos erupted through the Hall, Harry looked towards Hermione in confusion. "What the hell is the Triwizard Tournament?"

Hermione shook her head, and pointed back at Dumbledore.

Harry raptly listened to what the Headmaster said regarding the tournament. Despite it being closed for those under the age of seventeen, it sounded fascinating to Harry. He noticed everyone throughout the Hall whisper excitedly amongst themselves and their neighbours, imagining themselves as champions of the Tournament.

"The Heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will arrive with their short-listed contenders in October," Dumbledore said. "An impartial judge will decide who is worthy to compete for the Cup, for the glory of their school and a thousand Galleons."

Harry overhead Fred and George Weasley swearing that they would pass whatever barrier Dumbledore erected.

"A thousand galleons. Imagine that." Ron said with a faraway look.

"Please treat our foreign guests with every courtesy and respect, and give your wholehearted support to whoever the Hogwarts champion is. But now, it is late and is time for you all to rest. Bedtime!"

Groaning, students slowly began getting up onto their feet. Harry, Hermione, Ron, Neville, Dean and several others remained seated. They all watched as Fred and George reaffirm their intentions to enter the Tournament.

As Harry and Ron laughed at them, Hermione leaned in closer and said to him, "Harry, why is Daphne Greengrass staring at you as if she is debating on what curse she wants to inflict on you?"

Harry groaned audibly to himself, having known that she would be brought back into his mind. Harry slowly turned around and saw the girl in question. She was glaring at him venomously, her sharp blue eyes narrowed and piercing. Her hands seemed to be shaking and she was mumbling words under her breath that Harry was sure were not pleasant. It seemed her friend Tracey was attempting to fan her anger with not much success.

"Damn, she looks like she wants to kill you, Harry." Neville gulped nervously.

"Seriously, what in good heavens happened between you two? You have to tell us eventually." Hermione reasoned.

"Later," Harry said. "I'll explain in the morning before breakfast."

At least he would have the night to think it over.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Fred and George shuffled off towards the Entrance Hall. At that exact same moment, Daphne and Davis stood from their seats and began strode towards the same direction.

"Looks like we might find out before tomorrow, huh?" Ron whispered to Hermione, fully aware that Harry could hear him.

Damn it. Harry accelerated his walking speed, practically dragging the confused Weasley twins along with him. He did not want talk to Greengrass, especially in front of Ron and Hermione.

Thankfully, they managed to squeeze their way through the crowd amassed at the entrance and into the Hall before Daphne could reach them. He thanked chance that she had been seated at the other side of the hall.

"What do you think about the Tournament?" Ron asked Harry as they slowed down. "Be cool to enter, huh?"

"I think I've had enough excitement in my life, Ron." Harry grinned.

"I'spose, especially with that Slytherin girl. If only she wasn't a snake. She ain't bad-looking, especially with those blue eyes. Definitely quite fit as well."

"Ron!" Hermione chided him.

"Potter!" Harry almost stumbled through a trick stairway at the sound of the voice. _Speaking of who, how did she catch up so fast?_ He immediately recognised it and turned around with a weak smile.

Daphne Greengrass stood with Davis and the bronze-skinned boy only several feet away from them. If looks could kill, Harry would have been dead the moment he met her icy stare.

"We have to talk, Potter! Tomorrow, after our first lesson together." Daphne told him.

"Like I said on the train, of course." Harry mumbled, giving her a mock salute. He was not in the mood to speak with Greengrass.

"You better," Her friend Tracey Davis finally spoke, shooting Harry a dry smirk. "Otherwise she might freeze your bits off from across the dinner table! You wouldn't want that, would you Golden Boy?"

"I would like to see her try." Ron hissed at them, taking Harry's arm and pulling him away.

"Oooh, scary red Weasley. Would you like to experience it first hand, Weasley? Or too scared Granger wouldn't like it cold and resolute instead small and soft like it is normally?" Davis asked mockingly, causing the three Slytherins to laugh and walk away.

"Lousy snakes," Ron muttered to himself. "Always ruining everything."

As much as Hermione disapproved, Harry could not help but agree.

After they entered the Gryffindor common room and climbed to their respective dormitories, Harry and Ron and the rest of the fourth-years settled back into their extremely comfortable four poster-beds.

As Ron sleepily told Harry that he was considering entering the Tournament, Harry drifted to sleep. Images of a white wedding dress and blonde hair fell flat to him being the Hogwarts champion, holding the cup high in front of the whole school.

In his dreams, Harry spotted Cho in the crowd, who ran into his arms and kissed him in front of an applauding school. For the first time in what seemed like forever, Harry Potter went to sleep with a wide smile.


End file.
